I would avoid this film as readily as one avoids Siberia.
The Brothers Karamazov (1958)
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Reviews Counted:9
Fresh:3
Rotten:6
Average Rating:4.7/10
Runtime: 2 hrs 27 mins
Genre: Action/Adventure
Synopsis: In 19th-century tsarist Russia, four very different brothers are scheming against their lecherous and cruel father (Lee J. Cobb). Based on the famous novel by Fyodor Dostoyevsky, this lavish... In 19th-century tsarist Russia, four very different brothers are scheming against their lecherous and cruel father (Lee J. Cobb). Based on the famous novel by Fyodor Dostoyevsky, this lavish spectacle beautifully captures the wild life of the Karamazov family. The eldest brother, Dmitri (Yul Brenner), is constantly in search of money, desperate for his rightful inheritance that his father will not allow him. His saintly younger brother Alexey (William Shatner) loves all the brothers equally while Yvonne (Richard Basehart), a dispassionate intellectual, and Smerdjakov (Albert Salmi), an illegitimate schemer, are rivals for their father's attention and money. When Dmitri falls in love with his father's seductive young mistress (Maria Schell) he is driven mad with jealousy as he plots for a way to win her affections and end his father's claim on her. However, another brother kills their overbearing father and accuses Dmitri of the crime, threatening to divide the new lovers forever. This glorious spectacle features wild and tawdry scenes of Gypsy dancing and debauchery opposed by beautiful footage of rural Russia blanketed in pure snow. Schell is magnificent as the luminous and complex Grushenka, both as a seductive mistress and repentant lover. [More]
Starring: Yul Brynner, Claire Bloom, Lee J. Cobb, Maria Schell
Starring: Yul Brynner, Claire Bloom, Lee J. Cobb, Maria Schell, William Shatner, Richard Basehart, Albert Salmi, Judith Evelyn, Harry Townes
Director: Richard Brooks
Director: Richard Brooks
Screenwriter: Richard Brooks
Producer: Pandro S. Berman
Composer: Bronislau Kaper
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Reviews for The Brothers Karamazov
Bold handling of crude unbridled passion, of violently conflicting ideas, and of earthy humor makes up The Brothers Karamazov.
Very uncertain in period and atmosphere, and saddled with some terrible performances.
Conspicuous assets are the striking color photography and the musical score, both of which help a great deal in enhancing the drama's savage and soulful moods.
When the acting's good, it's very good, but when it's bad, it's laughable and director Brooks' attempts at injecting Slavic intensity misfire badly sometimes.
While not as terrible as his subsequent adaptation of Lord Jim, this 1958 Hollywoodization of the Dostoyevsky novel by writer-director Richard Brooks is pretty grotesque all the same.
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